Pieces Of The Puzzle
by CoffeeAddict92
Summary: Earlier titled 'Blood Moon Rising' Kensi gets shot at Callen's place, who goes missing. Months later a triple homicide in West Virginia names Callen as the primary suspect when his fingerprints are found all over the crime scene. Meanwhile an attempt on Kate's life sends her on a hunt for her missing brother and prove his innocence. Callen centered fic. Sequel to BLOODLINE. R&R!
1. Prologue

**Hello everyone! This is a new story I'm working on. My sister visited me in college and I got a free weekend: this is the result!**

**This is a sequel to **_**Bloodline**_**. All those incredible reviews were acting like cans of Red Bull to my plot bunny which kept nudging me. This takes place about eight months after **_**Bloodline.**_**Those who haven't read Bloodline, I recommend reading that first. **

**A/N: I haven't found any fanfic for the Sigma series which is an incredible set of books by James Rollins. So the only names I've used are Sigma and Painter Crowe.  
All characters of NCIS:LA belong to Shane Brennan and CBS.**

**I hope you enjoy this new one.**

**-Sam**

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_**Prologue**_

The Escalade made no noise as it slid into the driveway. A moment later a woman exited, pulling her coat tighter against the biting wind. Opening the back seat door, she pulled out a cardboard box, juggling it with another, and shut the door with her hip. She crossed over to the covered porch, eyeing the Mercedes parked right in front of the closed garage door.

The lights were off; typical of him. Balancing both the boxes in the crook of her left arm, she lifted the right and knocked twice. Her calmness melted away into worry when it swung away slightly under the force. Slowly she placed the boxes by the door and pulled out her SIG, turning off the safety. On a whim, she pulled out her phone and sent a text, paranoia be damned.

"Callen? You in here? Did you forget to shut the front door or something? I brought some of the paperwork you asked," Kensi kept talking, as she silently walked inside, gun aimed high. There were no curtains on windows; in the dim light, she saw nothing out of the ordinary. Callen's few belongings seemed to have not been disturbed. Only a book sat on a low table just by the plushy couch, on it s face. She peered at the title, making a face when she realized it was Cyrillic.

He was as bad as Hetty.

A pitter patter of claws made her swing around, only to relax when a black and grey tabby cat came into view. It was Callen's newest pet. It came straight up to her and rubbed against her leg, purring lightly. She bent down to rub the back.

That was the only reason she saw it. A booted foot, to be exact. Straightening slowly she moved down further. Slowly she swung into view. She let out a breath, not realizing she'd been holding it.

It wasn't Callen. It was some guy barely in his early twenties, with a shock of dark hair and caramel skin. He was clearly dead, eyes staring up, three visible GSWs. She pulled out her phone, thumbing 9-1-1.

As she relayed her findings, her eyes searched for anything that would ID him.

She never saw the shadow just behind her. Double muffled shots rang out; none missed their newest target.

NCIS Agent Kensi Blye fell to the floor, her phone still clutched in her hand.

* * *

Washington D.C.

"Damn! Its freezing," the tall man grumbled as he followed a crowd of people exiting the Capitol Hill courtrooms. The woman laughed, tucking her shoulder length dark copper hair under a knit cap, letting the curls spill out.

"It's January, Boss" she quipped.

"Days like these make me want to retire to the Bahamas for the rest of my life," Painter Crowe grumbled.

"Yeah right," Kate replied, looking at the three inch snow on the ground. It was still snowing, tiny flakes melting as they hit the ground. "Like they'd let you resign."

He chuckled, and replied, "Better get going. I don't want to experience Sarah's wrath for being late again. Pregnant women are scarier," he added as an afterthought.

Kate slid into the driver's seat of her silver Audi; Painter paused to chuck his bag in the backseat before buckling in. She peeled away from the parking spot. It was only a short drive to the tavern. But the traffic was worse in the area.

Twenty minutes later, she pulled up in front of the brownstone building with 'Benny's Tavern' spelled out in glowing neon lights. The rest of the team was already there. The extra people were Bishop's wife, Michelle, who worked as a doctor in Georgetown hospital in the cardiology department. Beside Michelle, wearing a thick pink muffler sat Painter's fiancée, Sarah Hills, a brilliant analyst in Sigma.

Sean Winchester got up, and kissed his girlfriend. Tucking Kate against his side he sat down. Bishop whistled, earning a head slap from Michelle. "Grow up Danny," she said, smiling at the new couple.

The waitress brought a fresh round of beers for the team, except for Sarah who was nursing a glass of soda and tonic. Painter lifted his beer mug. "A toast. To family, to love, to the craziest yet best team. Bravery and sacrifice, hope and commitment. To us."

"To us," they all echoed, clinking glasses.

Kate was taking in the decorated place; New Year had been a week ago. Unfortunately half the team had been in South Africa, including Kate, attending a UN convention. Sean and Bishop had spent almost a month in Tel Aviv, working undercover with a few Marines.

This was the first time they had congregated.

Kate's cell phone rang, and she excused herself and got up. In was so loud inside she didn't bother answering until she was outside. She realized it was her unencrypted Blackberry. The caller ID said Pacific Beach Hospital, Los Angeles. Slightly worried she hit he answer button.

"Black-"

_"Kate, it's me, Det. Deeks. I work with Callen."_ Deeks voice came out upset and worried.

"Of course I remember you Deeks. What is it? Is Callen okay? You're calling from a hospital."

There was a silence, before Deeks lowered his voice and said, "_Earlier this evening, Kensi went to give Callen some paperwork. He had a few busted ribs from our last case; mild bruising, but Hetty sent him to recuperate for a couple of days. Anyway, Kensi texted me that Callen's place had been open; no sign of forced entry though. When she didn't call me back, I called back. She-she'd been shot. Callen is missing, and they found a dead guy at his place. No ID on him yet."_

Kate felt cold, it had nothing to do with the snow still falling, sticking to her hair.

"Is Kensi okay?"

_"Still in surgery. Both shots to the back. Her thick overcoat somehow reduced the GSW damage."_

"Hang in there, Marty. Are you sure Callen's missing? Has he been kidnapped?"

_"His car was still in the driveway. And there was no sign of struggle. FBI took over; they won't let NCIS investigate their own. But I snuck into the LAPD precinct and checked the nearest traffic cam. Till now, there's no evidence Callen's been kidnapped or otherwise."_

"What's Hetty saying? Sam?"

_"Hetty is worried. Sam's in Ethiopia, working undercover with the DEA for the last few weeks. We can't contact him."_

Kate contemplated for a minute. "I'll put some feelers out. I know a few people in the west coast. Keep me updated on Kensi and any news on Callen."

_"Will do. Thanks Kate."_

She disconnected the call, watching the twin blinking lights atop the Washington Monument.

She had a feeling this was far from over.

_Where the hell did you get yourself into this time, Gray?_

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**Please review! I'd love to know what you think!**

**Also I'm looking for a beta. If anyone's interested, please PM me. Thanks**


	2. Chapter 1

**Thanks for the encouraging reviews! Hope this lives upto your expectations.**

**A/N: Game is looking...game sees nothing :(**

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_**Chapter 1**_

3 months later…

Bethany, West Virginia

Jessica Tyler grumbled in annoyance as she pushed her cleaning cart down the corridor. With her youngest son sick in the dreadful weather, she couldn't afford to take a day off. Her daily pay at the sleazy motel was all that was keeping a roof over her and the four kids' heads.

She stopped in front the last room on the second floor. Room 216 was spelt out in peeling red letters, the 'm' hanging upside down. She knocked thrice, waited for thirty seconds before saying, "Cleaning service."

Receiving no answer, she unlocked the door with her master key. Turning around, she pulled her cart in, pushing the door. Halfway to the wall, it stopped. Frowning, she pushed it harder, but it refused to budge. She poked her head in and peered around it.

At first she thought she'd seen a bloody pillow. A second later, realization hit with the force a truck.

Jessica Tyler had never screamed louder before.

:::

FBI Special Agent Randall Wesley had seen many grisly crime scenes in his career of almost a decade. But even he had to admit there was something different about this one. Not only was the killer a psychopath, he also had a strange sense of humor. He watched the coroner's van parked in the front, swarmed by two police cruisers. The good Sheriff and his deputy were still reeling from the events. Not that he could blame them.

"Randy, you need to see this." Wesley turned around to look at his partner, SA Jeff Stevens. Stevens still maintained his Marine haircut from his days.

He followed him back up in the dingy establishment. Ducking through the taped off crime scene, he grabbed a pair of blue latex gloves. He looked around at the room. A single room with twin beds both soaked with blood. A tiny kitchenette to one corner and a closet sized bathroom completed the décor.

The threadbare carpet was frayed with holes, through which cheap tiles poked out. It was hard to tell the color of either because of the sizable pool of blood scattered all over.

He pictured the crime scene three hours previously. Three victims- two men, one woman. Chopped into pieces like cut vegetables. With the severed arteries, they'd bled out like fountains. But all their CODs had been double GSWs to their heads: execution style. The killer had then cut them up, scattering the pieces of the victims all over the place, almost as if redesigning the room.

He'd briefly talked with Tyler; rather he'd talked while she stared off into space. The woman was gonna need therapy for the rest of her life. Deputy Mason had been asked to escort her home. Sheriff Weed stood at the door, mopping his face. He'd lost his stomach after one look at the scene.

"Here," Stevens said, indicating something he'd found. Wesley sat on his haunches and peered in closer. Carefully he lifted a corner of the carpet and looked at what appeared to a whitish powder.

"Drug deal gone wrong?" Stevens asked, transferring the substance into a transparent evidence bag. Sealing it, he handed it to Wesley who held it up.

"Could be. But drug dealers don't usually chop up their enemies. This guy has gone to lengths of actually arranging the body parts in strategic positions. That's says premeditated not whimsical."

"Sir, we found something," one of the CSU techie said, waving them to the table. An empty bottle of bourbon sat on the table along with a few empty glasses. The guy held another, also in an evidence bag.

"This guy wasn't too good. Fingerprints. Clear and fresh," he said, grinning smugly.

"Run it."

"Already did sir. You're not gonna believe it," he added. He moved to his computer and typed quickly. A perfect match popped up, including a picture.

Stevens leaned in closer. "Wait I know this guy. Isn't he the one of the Feds who went missing a few months back? And another got shot. Harry was investigating that case."

Wesley stared grimly at the picture. "Well he isn't missing anymore. He just killed and butchered three men. Looks like G. Callen just popped up back on the radar."

* * *

Brooklyn, New York

The plane arrived ten minutes ahead of schedule, courtesy of a helluva tailwind. Even in the rainy weather La Guardia was packed.

Kate looked around as she reached the arrivals lounge, trundling a small bag behind.

"Katie!" Sure enough, the high pitched voice was accompanied by a blonde haired girl, rushing through the crowd, elbowing her way through with the energy of a small nuclear plant. She slammed into the brunette almost knocking her over.

"Easy there, kiddo. Let me take a look at you." Kate held her goddaughter by the shoulders smiling at her. Jackie Cole stared back at her, brown eyes full of mischief. "You're almost taller than me," she said, ruffling the short spiky hair. "Where's your mum?"

"Somewhere," Jackie replied cheekily. "She's always getting lost."

"I wouldn't if I didn't have to suffer a heart attack every time you disappear," Kylie Cole's voice said, hands on her hips. Her face broke into a smile as she glanced at Kate. The women shared a hug. Kylie squeezed her shoulders when they pulled back. Her pale blue eyes were a dead ringer to her dead brother. Her shoulder length blonde hair was tied back in a pony tail, enhancing her slanted eyes and round cheekbones.

"You look well," Kate said. Kylie shrugged, tucking her hands in her jeans pocket.

Jackie led the adults back towards the parking lot, chatting nineteenth to the dozen, hands flying animatedly. Kate stopped for second, looking around the rain washed parking lot. Her eyes scanned the area.

"Kate?" Kylie asked noticing her friend's frown. She looked around too. "What is it?"

"Nothing. Thought that- never mind. Come on," she said, waving a hand and sliding into the backseat.

The man in the black BMW lifted his baseball cap a little as the grey Volvo crossed directly in front of him. The woman inside turned her head slightly, eyes furrowed. He dipped his head a little, acknowledging her. Her face smoothed out, just as she disappeared from view.

* * *

Los Angeles, California

Sunlight fell through the windows draping the sleeping figure in warmth. The curtains were not drawn across and the woman groaned in annoyance and burrowed herself further into the sheets.

"Deeks, turn the damn light off."

Marty Deeks chuckled as Kensi poked an arm out and stabbed the air, hunting for a switch. Rolling over, he slid an arm around her waist. Kensi Blye was definitely _not_ a morning person. She nuzzled against him. He dropped a kiss on her nose and whispered, "You'll be the first person who's trying to find a switch to turn off the sun."

Kensi cracked open an eye, sending a very sleepy glare in his general direction. He always found it ridiculously adorable. That expression was right next to his favorite: an inebriated Kensi Blye's dopey grin.

"Morning Princess." Kensi stifled a yawn before rolling over slowly and carefully. Any sudden movements usually had her stuck in bed with pain for a few hours. Deeks waited till he could help her, and then gently helped her up. She took a couple of deep breaths testing her muscles.

"Alright?" he asked, tucking a wild curl back into place. She nodded.

"Blueberry or normal?" he asked swinging his legs over the edge and hunting for the missing left socks.

"Blueberry," she replied in a _duh_ tone. He chuckled at her expression.

After breakfast, Deeks ran about his place, late yet again. Even though Kensi was still on leave due to her shooting, Deeks had started going to the OSP just a week before. He'd taken leave to take care of Kensi. But even after almost three months, Kensi had nearly kicked him out of his own place and sent him to work.  
But with Callen still on the wind, Sam in Ethiopia for the third month, work wasn't what he'd usually associated the place he'd known with. Eric and Nell could only do so much. With Callen gone, even Nell had lost her witty self.

"I'll be home early," he said, kissing Kensi. She was sitting on his couch, already holding a romance paperback.

She rolled her eyes at his attempt of cheesy humor. Then her eyes fell on the rows of pictures on the mantel and her face fell. A photograph of their entire team stared back at her. Callen stood sandwiched between Sam and Deeks, all three smiling goofily at the camera.

Deeks noticed her wistful expression. He took off the side bag and knelt on the carpet in front of her. Taking her hands in his, he said, "We'll find him, Kens. I promise you, we will." Kensi nodded, eyes filling with tears. He squeezed her hand again, as she gave him a watery smile. Deeks pressed a kiss to her knuckles.

"He's okay."

"How do you know?" Kensi asked sounding much like a small child seeking assurance.

"I know. This is Callen. He always has a plan."

She nodded. "Yeah he does. He'll turn up."

"Yes he will. And Sam's gonna be so pissed when he gets back next week. He's gonna rip him a new one."

Kensi smiled broader. She had no trouble picturing Sam's expression when he came to know what his partner had done.

He stood up, kissed her again before leaving.

He sat in the Malibu, hands on the steering wheel wondering for the millionth time if they'd ever see Callen again.

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**Reviews are greatly appreciated! Every writer knows what they mean!**


	3. Chapter 2

_****_**A/N: Own nothing**

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_**Chapter 2**_

Kylie Cole had been just twenty when she'd found out she was pregnant. The consequence of a one night stand gave her a daughter nine months later. Jacqueline Cole was born on a warm summer afternoon. With their parents dead, Alex Cole had done everything to support his sister and his baby niece. Kate had been with Kylie, throughout her pregnancy. A pre-law student, Kylie rejoined school at Kate's suggestion while both Alex and Kate raised Jackie when her mother was busy graduating from college.

On Jackie's first birthday, Alex had proposed to Kate. A year later, he was six feet under at Arlington.

His death had broken Kylie more than it had Kate. After graduating with honors from Georgetown, she'd gotten a job in New York. Before leaving, Kylie had asked Kate to be Jackie's godmother. She'd agreed. In the decade since then, Kylie had become a little sister to her. She adored Jackie. Jackie had known her uncle only through pictures. But Kate had to admit, with each passing year, she saw more of Alex in Jackie than her biological parents.

And Jackie was strangely attached to Kate. Maybe the fact that both grew up under a single parent, and a bond that even her mother couldn't explain. When Kylie moved to England for a few years as a liaison with the British counterpart of her firm, Jackie had refused to go. Kate had taken her in.  
It was the same time that Sean had come into her life. Sean's daughter Macy was about the same age as Jackie. The kids had instantly bonded.

Kate looked at the photographs on the wall, stopping in front of the one taken on Jackie's first birthday. Alex and Kate held up a gurgling baby between them, kissing each of her cheeks on either side. She touched Alex's frozen smile on the photo, remembering the moment. He'd been so nervous. The man who'd done three tours in Iraq had knelt on one knee, babbling nervously asking her to marry him.

"Morning, Katie," Jackie mumbled sleepily as she emerged from her bedroom, dressed in her PJs.

"Morning sleepyhead," Kate said, grinning at her. Jackie's hair stuck up like an angry porcupine. "You're mum left an hour ago. What do you want for breakfast? Pancakes?"

"With sugar and maple syrup," Jackie replied, rubbing one eye. "Thank god it's a Saturday."

"Doctor Who marathon, kiddo. Wanna watch?" Jackie smiled. "Would I ever!"

After breakfast, they settled down on the couch, armed with snacks. In the middle of a commercial break, Kate's phone started ringing.

"I thought you said no work," Jackie said, as she watched her hunt for her elusive phone.

"Must be an emergency. I'll be right back. Don't finish the popcorn," she added as she stepped into the balcony for some privacy.

She hit the answer button.

_"Annie, we got a problem,"_ the voice said.

"Meaning?"

_"Turn on the news channel. It's big and spells out trouble in ten different languages."_

"What are you talking about, Balthazar?"

_"Three bodies turned up dead in a West Virginian small town. FBI's keeping it from the media but they have a suspect. They found fingerprints."_

"I saw that news."

_"The fingerprints are a match to your missing half brother, Grayson Callen. If I'm not wrong, the Feds are gonna turn up asking questions. Although I think it'll be sometime before anyone finds out you're his next of kin."_

Kate stared off into the skyline, phone to her ear, mind racing.

"He's being set up, Zar," she said, finally.

_"I'm not saying anything. But you know how the system works, better than I do."_

"Yeah. Who's the SAC on this one?"

She heard a chuckle on the other end.

_"Old Randy. Randall Wesley. He's gonna have a coronary seeing you alive and well. After all, as I recall, your last meeting went rather-well, for the lack of a better word- eventful."_

Kate smiled. "Thanks for the heads-up, old fella. You stickin' around? Besides the airport I mean."

_"Feds give me ulcers. But I'll be around. Old Balthazar at your service, Milady,"_ he said, with his best Scottish accent before ending the call.

Kate tapped one end of her phone on her chin. In the last few weeks she had exhausted about every resource looking for Callen. It was as if he'd vanished off the face of the earth. And now he turns up as a suspect. Knowing Agent Wesley, he was already on a man hunt.

Callen would need hell of proof to walk out of this alive.

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**Please review! I'd love to know what you think. Should I continue?**


	4. Chapter 3

_****_**Thank you for the reviews. still own nothing**

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_**Chapter 3**_

Sean Winchester had an intuition that went hand in hand with his healthy level of paranoia. The door _wasn't _open; one of the traps he'd set up if someone came and went through his place, _wasn't _triggered. Yet something made his radar go beeping that made him stop just inside the doorway.

Silently, he pulled out his gun, not yet flicking off the safety. Raising it a little higher, he rounded the corner, flipping on the light switch with his elbow. His living room flooded with light, illuminating the lone visitor on the armchair.

Sean kept his gun high, taking a minute to watch the figure. The man looked up, smiling a little.

"Good to see you Sean," he said, taking off the black baseball cap and running a hand through his stubble of a hair.

"Likewise, Gray."

:::

Sean handed him a beer bottle and sat down. Untwisting the lid off he said, "Kate's in New York. And not to sound rude but you shouldn't be here. The FBI-"

"-is still on my ass. I know," Callen said, taking a swig from his bottle. "But that's not why I'm here." He pulled out his phone, tapped on a few keys before showing him the screen. The man staring back at Sean was the same man the cops had found dead in his house.

"He is still a John Doe. Deeks keeps updating Kate regularly. They still don't know who he is."

"I do," Callen said, eliciting a quirked eyebrow from the other man. "Rashid Talbot, a British MI5 operative who works- worked- with the CIA."

"And how do you know him? From your CIA days?" Sean asked. Callen nodded.

"Rad and I worked a joint operation with the French in Somalia in human trafficking about a decade ago. He was then with the MI6. After the mission, he asked for a transfer to MI5 to stay closer to his daughter after he lost his wife in cancer. We kept in touch."

"He's dead now." Callen chewed the inside of his lip. Sean leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.

"Gray, you have a warrant out on your name on murder charges. They found a dead body in your house, and three months later your fingerprints turn up at a crime scene of triple homicide. Every agency out there has a BOLO, APB out on your name. So you're gonna have to tell me everything. What was Talbot doing at your house? And where the hell have you been all these months?"

Callen finished his beer and set the bottle down.

"Three months ago, Rad called me up. Not unusual; as I said, we kept in touch. He called me up babbling something about an ambush. When I asked him where he said he couldn't tell me over the phone. Two days later he flew in to L.A.; he holed up somewhere in a motel. He was supposed to meet me at my place, said it was the only place he'd meet me. The guy sounded paranoid and scared to death. He wasn't at all acting the man I knew. Anyway, he turned up, as he said."

"What did he say?"

Callen leaned back. "That's when we got interrupted. Two men, packing .45s. Tyler took three to his torso. One escaped; I gave chase. Two blocks down in an alley, he stopped, turned around. I raised my gun to shoot but he threw his gun out, pulled out an envelope and threw it on the ground. I shot him, went forward to make sure he's dead. Dead as a doornail, no doubt about that. I bent down to pick up the envelope, someone hit me over the head; lights out. I woke up hours later. The dead body was gone, but the envelope was there. I had landed on top of that, and whoever removed the body didn't check for it. I opened the envelope. Photographs, a couple of dozen of them.  
Anyway I went back to the house, but saw cruisers parked all over. I needed to investigate what had happened. So I-"

"-you ran," Sean finished, shaking his head.

"I had to leave," Callen corrected. "I'm not saying it was my wisest choice, but I had no option."

"Blye was shot at your place; Kate's lost hours of sleep trying to find you. Pray tell me what was so important you couldn't contact your team or your sister."

"Because of this." Callen extracted a rolled up file from his coat's inner pocket and dropped it on the coffee table.

Sean frowned as he pulled the file closer and flipped open the cover. A dozen photographs spilled out. Sean picked up the first one, eyebrows pinched as he realized what he was staring at. When he looked at the others, he felt an involuntarily urge to blast whoever had taken them into a million bloody pieces. He lifted his head and saw Callen watching him.

"They've been watching me. Me, my team and even Kate. They've been following me for months, even when I came to D.C. to visit dad and Kate. And there's no way in hell I was gonna put my team or my sister in danger, Sean. It's my job to protect them. This was a warning."

Sean scrubbed his face. He was a second away from speed dialing Kate. She's was going to be pissed if she found out Sean had met Callen and kept her in the dark.

"You have any leads who they are?" he asked instead. For the first time since arriving, Callen gave his crooked smile.

"As a matter of fact, I do."

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**More action coming up next chapter... Review and let me know what you think. Love to hear your thoughts!**


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